With fly tipping having increased dramatically in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole area over the past couple of years South West farmers and landowners are being urged to take extra steps to protect themselves against this scourge on the countryside.

According to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) in 2019/2020, there were 1,705 incidents in the conurbation, but this rose dramatically to 2,791 for 2020/202i.

The picture wasn’t quite so bleak in the Dorset Council area with a rise from 1870 to 1937 over the same period.

Rupert Wailes-Fairbairn, of rural insurance broker Lycetts said: “Fly-tipping is an unwelcome blight on our countryside and can represent far more than an inconvenience to victims of the crime. Although local authorities will usually pay the clean-up costs of clearing waste from public land, the responsibility for removing waste from private land falls squarely at the feet of the landowners. If they fail to do so, they can face prosecution.”

Clean-up bills per incident average around £1,000, according to the National Rural Crime Network, but large-scale incidents can cost upwards of £10,000.

Environmental criminals can be more inclined to act under cover of darkness and councils will often see a surge of incidents in January as people look to dispose of post festive waste, including Christmas trees.